Cincy Entrepreneur

When Todd Uterstaedt was growing up, he spent his
summers in Norwich, Conn. going to local farms with his grandmother and
picking out fresh produce, which they'd use to cook homemade meals
together.

"My grandma taught me to selflessly care about other
people," Uterstaedt says. "Going to farmers markets and getting to know
the people who give you your food "” it's very relationship-oriented and
it's kind of like what we do today . . . . It's where this all started
from."

Today, Uterstaedt is co-founder, president and CEO
of Baker & Daboll, an executive coaching firm in Cincinnati, which
seeks to increase an organization's value by helping their leaders
discover their unrealized potential. Named after Uterstaedt and his
partner Kyle Steele's grandmothers and the values they instilled in
them, the company prides itself on the importance of listening, the
virtue of kindness and support, and the proper way to treat others.

"Help them see their gifts'

"I love helping people grow," Uterstaedt says. "It's so fulfilling to open someone's eyes to help them see their gifts."

Baker & Daboll provides one-on-one executive
coaching, executive team coaching and the design, management and
measuring of mentoring programs for four different market areas, which
include senior managers to CEOs, professionals such as attorneys or
architects, healthcare professionals and former military personnel.

And as a former Army intelligence officer,
Uterstaedt says helping military personnel transition into corporate
America is something he holds very dear.

"I did things in the military that few people ever
get to do," he says. "At a very early age, I developed leadership
skills. I had mentors who taught me what being a leader is all about
and I learned to find my own leadership voice."

Uterstaedt, in turn, works as a senior executive
coach for many military officers, along with other professionals,
mentoring them to identify and translate their strengths into their work
environment.

Know who you are

"You have to help people know themselves," he says.

Even before Uterstaedt and his partner started Baker
& Daboll, the first thing he did was take a hard look at his own
strengths and weaknesses.

"I took all my school report cards from the time I
was in kindergarten and all my work evaluations, military evaluations,
and asked myself "¢do I have what it takes?' I went around asking people
about myself, and one word that permeated through all that stuff was
enthusiasm. So I thought, you know, maybe I have enough enthusiasm to do
this and to get us through the hard times."

It was Uterstaedt's enthusiasm and his partner's
creativity, he believes, along with the help of countless other
individuals, that turned Baker & Daboll from a dream into a reality.

"I'm a big supporter from Cincinnati and I'm not
from here," he says. "Cincinnati is going through a renaissance right
now that I feel so privileged to be a part of. So if you see an
entrepreneur, take them under your wing and help them fly ... I've lived
across the country and the world, but in my humble opinion, there's no
better place to start a business."